Evadne was gazing out the window of her rented apartment again. Memories flooded back to her when she had to give up her life in their mansion and settle for a small apartment, just enough for someone living solo like her. Now, here she was again. It wasn’t the mansion she had to give up, if it wasn’t not the cold relationship with her husband, Orion.Instead of opting for a condo unit, she searched for an apartment to move into. She had spent days accumulating various belongings, all funded by the credit card under her husband Orion Ashford’s name.In the over seven months they had been married, she had never used that card even once. Until now. She was certain he would be surprised by the number of items she bought with his credit card, nearing its limit.In a way, she wanted to retaliate by extravagantly spending his money.He was the one who told her to use it whenever she needed to. Despite having substantial savings, she never touched a penny of it.Being alone felt strange.She
The entire company of Orion Ashford was in chaos that morning. It was announced that day that his father, James Ashford, who served as the president and CEO of Ashford Empire New York branch, had something important to announce.Orion’s father, James Ashford, had returned from Seoul, South Korea, adding an air of anticipation to the atmosphere. Orion himself was surprised by the sudden call from his father, that he was coming back to the country.Almost everyone was already inside the spacious boardroom, but the meeting had not yet started. James Ashford, an older man with grayish hair, arrived, and even Orion bowed his head in respect upon his father’s arrival.“Aren’t we starting yet?” Orion couldn’t help but ask his neighboring board director.“We’re still waiting.”“For whom?”The person beside Orion shrugged. “I don’t know either.” His gaze followed the opening door of the boardroom. “Looks like they’re the ones we’re waiting for.”Orion turned his gaze toward the door where two
Gavin attended the party, a personal invitation from Mr. James Ashford. The event served as the formal announcement of Mr. Ashford’s resignation as the president and CEO of the ASHFORD Empire, with Gavin set to take over as the new CEO.Even before the party started, Orion Lee was already accompanied by a glass of alcohol. Gavin intentionally chose to sit next to him.“You’re Mr. Ashford’s son, right?” he asked.Orion nodded. “Supposed to be his successor. But little did I know that my father had other plans,” he added, shaking his head.“Why didn’t he pass it on to you then?”“My father had many conditions. If it all leads to this, wasting my time on that woman was pointless,” he said with a sigh.That woman? Was he referring to Evadne?Gavin pursed his lips. If Orion dismisses her that easily, so be it. He never cared for her.“I heard you’re married,” he mentioned casually.Orion shook his head, tightly gripping his wine glass. “Did my father tell you? Well, not anymore.”And you’r
Because Evadne was once again alone in life, she decided to expand her business. She planned to open another branch of her coffee shop. She was just contemplating on the ideal location for it.She couldn’t rely on the sole branch of her coffee shop forever. Even if it’s not too big and just the right size, slightly smaller than the main branch.Evadne rubbed her temples. She felt dizzy again, even though she had eaten breakfast. She also went to bed early last night.From sitting on the sofa in her small living room, she moved to her kitchen and drank some water.When her cell phone, placed in the living room, rang, she hurriedly went there to answer the call.Her college friend, Galilena was calling. “You called?”“Evadne, it’s been a while. I wanted to invite you,” Galilena said on the other end.“Where?”“Party,” she replied shortly. “Isaac is throwing a party on Saturday night. I’ll text you the address. Come, okay? Don’t be absent.”Evadne hesitated. Will she go? She’s sure Orion
“I’m glad you came,” Galilena greeted Evadne with a wide smile as she arrived at the venue of the party. It was held at the pool area of a five-star hotel.Their friend, Isaac De Delta, was about to migrate to the US. Many of their college batchmates, who were also frequent attendees at parties and events, were present. Isaac’s personal friends were also there.Evadne breathed a sigh of relief when she didn’t see Camila or Orion at the party. If the two were present, it would surely ruin her mood, and she might not even continue with the party.“I might upset Isaac if I didn’t come,” Evadne said to her friend.“Let’s go, many are waiting for you,” Galilena urged Evadne to move.Why were many waiting for her? Was she too late?Most of their acquaintances were standing around, engaged in lively conversations. They were professionals in various fields, such as doctors, lawyers, engineers, and successful business owners.“Evadne,” Isaac said with delight as he saw her. He hugged her. “It’
“EVADNE, are you okay?” Galilena noticed that Evadne seemed a bit uneasy at that moment.Evadne’s silent plea was for Isaac not to bring Gavin to their spot.Well, his name suits him. Now she knows his name. But still, she doesn’t want to prolong whatever happened between them that night. She wants to put an end to it. One of the reasons she can’t go back to her coffee shop is because of that guy. She’s not ready to face him.“I’m okay,” she smiled at Galilena.Every woman around her, married or not, still talked about Gavin. How wealthy he is, how gorgeous and hot he is, and so on.Right, he’s hot. Literally.She shook her head slightly as memories of the heated encounter with Gavin crossed her mind again.Something happened between her and Orion, but what she experienced with Gavin, the notorious womanizer, was something she had never experienced with Orion. For some reason, it felt like she lost her virginity again when he first attempted to be intimate with her. A shiver ran down
Gavin observed Evadne closely. She still seemed oblivious. The doctor warned that if she didn’t wake up soon, she might continue sleeping and wake up only the next day.When Evadne suddenly lost consciousness earlier, Gavin didn’t hesitate to bring her to his penthouse, instructing his doctor to attend to her there. The doctor assured him that Evadne’s loss of consciousness was likely due to extreme stress, a nervous breakdown.Gavin shook his head as he recalled the people surrounding Evadne earlier. They seemed to have ganged up on her, almost bullying her to the point where she couldn’t defend herself.He couldn’t believe that Evadne had such a circle of friends. Or maybe those people just seized the opportunity to talk about Evadne? Which was it?Even Gavin did not expect to see Evadne at Isaac De Delta’s party. Isaac was throwing a farewell party as he was leaving the country, and Isaac wasn’t part of Gavin’s circle of friends. He only knew him in the business world.He thought h
Camila almost screamed when she saw Orion, who could barely walk properly. Orion’s clothes were stained with blood, and there was a cut on his left eyebrow, with traces of blood on his cheek. His right eye had a black eye, and his lips were swollen. His face was covered in bruises.“W-what happened to you?” Camila asked almost breathlessly. She moved to support Orion, who then pushed her hand away.“You,” Orion said with a firm and angry tone, besides being badly beaten, he seemed drunk.“W-what?”“Get out of my house!”Camila stood in shock at Orion’s outburst. “Y-you’re just drunk, Orion. Do you want coffee? Tell me. I’ll help you inside for now.”“You son of a b***h,” Orion started swearing. He entered his condo unit leaning on the wall and rejected Camila’s offered hand.Camila gasped as Orion abruptly knocked down items on a display cabinet he passed by. Since the display was fragile, everything broke when it hit the floor.Camila hurriedly closed the door of the condo unit, unsu